


Identity

by idareu2bme



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien Agreste Needs a Hug, Adrien needs hugs, Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Poor Adrien, Pre-Relationship, unbetaed
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-17
Updated: 2018-01-26
Packaged: 2019-03-05 23:39:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13398723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/idareu2bme/pseuds/idareu2bme
Summary: When Alya starts to speculate about the new boy in their class being Chat Noir, Adrien has a bit of an identity crisis.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> AH. I have never written for this fandom before but hopefully you can find something in this little fic that you enjoy.

Adrien was pleased to be back at school. It had been a long break filled to the brim with photoshoots, wardrobe fittings, interviews, nutritionist meetings, new workout regimes with his personal trainer, and tedious formal dinners. His father's summer schedule for him had been so full, in fact, that it had actually spilled over into the first week of classes causing Adrien to completely miss his first week back at school.

 

But, now he was finally back and, three days in, he was still just _so_ happy, _so relieved_ to be back. Sure, since he had missed the first week, he was already behind and rushing to catch up, but to be seated in his familiar spot and surrounded by his fellow classmates was such a great feeling that he felt like he might burst. He glanced over at Nino seated beside him and had a sudden, ridiculous urge to throw his arms around him in a huge hug. He expected that was likely a bit much and would cause some awkwardness, so he kept himself in check. Their fist bump upon seeing each other in front of the school earlier that morning would have to do.

 

The familiar sound of Alya and Marinette giggling together behind him brought a smile to his face. He would likely have hugged them right after hugging Nino had he actually allowed himself to do so. These were his friends and he was _so_ happy to be back in their presence. He'd been waiting all summer to be back around people who simply treated him like a fellow teen instead of some sort of big investment with a fast approaching expiry date. He was so happy, in fact, that for a moment, he even considered turning off his phone so as to have zero interruptions from his life and just exist there in the moment. He knew better than to turn off his phone. Instead, he smiled ruefully to himself and simply hoped that he would get no interrupting calls with sudden schedule changes.

 

"Augh, I can't believe there's already an exam this week," grumbled Nino pulling Adrien from his thoughts. "The break was way too short and this is ridiculous, it's only the second week back."

 

Adrien smiled at his friend and patted his shoulder. He wasn’t about to say that he was even less prepared for the exam on Friday being that he started a week late.

 

"Well, they _did_ say the final year would be tough," he offered as sympathetically as he could. Nino huffed at that before pulling out his books from his bag.

 

"He's totally Chat Noir. How do you not see it?" sounded Alya's voice from over Adrien’s shoulder. Adrien froze. Alya had been talking for some time, but a line like _that_ quickly grabbed his attention. Heart hammering, Adrien slowly turned in his seat.

 

Alya was partway turned around in her own seat, looking at the group of students standing at the back of the room. Marinette was shaking her head with a small smile. Neither were looking at him which hopefully meant they hadn't talking about him.

 

“What’s this about Chat Noir?” asked Adrien, going for friendly instead of mild panic attack. “You have some new info for your Ladyblog, Alya?”

 

"Okay, I admit, it is just speculation at this point, but...,” replied Alya, drawing out the pause for added drama, “I’m almost ninety-nine percent certain that Chat Noir is the new guy, Lucas."

 

She looked pleased to have an audience to her latest theory. Adrien was just happy she hadn't been talking about him. He quietly let out the breath he'd been holding and relaxed his shoulders, then realized Alya was waiting for his reaction. _Oops_. He opened his mouth to say something, but Marinette beat him to it.

 

"I just don't see it," she argued with a shrug before turning and momentarily making eye contact with Adrien. Her eyes widened for a fraction of a second and she quickly looked down with a nervous smile that had Adrien's heart panging. It was adorable, but also disheartening. It had taken a two years, but they had finally moved past Marinette’s inexplicable shyness when it came to him --or so he had thought. Perhaps the time apart over summer had caused it to remanifest and it would dissipate quickly now that they were back in school.  

 

"How can you not see it?" protested Alya. "Look at him!"

 

“What’s this?” asked Nino, turning in his seat, too.

 

“Alya thinks Lucas is Chat Noir,” explained Marinette while making an unimpressed face that included the most wonderful scrunching of her pert nose. Adrien’s heart made that twisting, panging sensation again.

 

The four all looked back at the boy in question. He was standing at the back of the classroom surrounded by a small group of other students. His body language was all confidence and his expression was... it looked like the kind of smile a celebrity might plaster on their face during big appearances. Adrien wrinkled his nose in distaste, he'd been around enough of those sorts of smiles over the summer. Lucas said something and a group of three girls standing beside him broke out in giggles.

 

"Wow," breathed Marinette in a tone that Adrien couldn't decipher, but was happy to note didn't sound impressed.

 

"See?" said Alya, "definitely Chat Noir."

 

Adrien snorted... and immediately grimaced when Alya raised an eyebrow at him.

 

"Look, he's blond, he's new, he's about the right height and body shape, he's obviously very fit, and he _exudes_ confidence, which, I suspect, anyone who spends their free time as a superhero would."

 

Adrien bit his lips together at that. He accidently made eye contact with Marinette at that moment and, though she blushed a deep pink, she managed to hold his gaze that time and even roll her eyes in shared amusement over Alya. It made Adrien smile although he wasn’t sure what joke they were sharing. Marinette didn’t know he was Chat Noir so why did she think… oh well.

 

"Okay, but there's probably thousands of guys in the correct age range in Paris with blond hair who are relatively the same height and shape as Chat Noir," countered Nino.

 

"Sure, but his hair isn't just blond, the style and length look similar, plus his eyes are... well I'm not sure what colour his eyes are,” said Alya making a face. “Marinette, go get a closer look at his eyes. See if they're green."

 

"No! What!? no!" hissed Marinette in horror.

 

"That won't prove anything," said Nino. "Chat Noir’s got big, green, _cat_ eyes while in his suit, but that doesn't mean his secret identity has green eyes. He could have any colour of _human_ eyes. And that’s if he even _has_ a secret identity..."

 

"Oh, they walk among us," said Alya gravely, her eyes narrowing.  

 

“Okay,” cut in Marinette, her voice sounding a touch squeaky, “but can we all please stop looking at him. We are definitely being creepy. Turn.. turn around!” She snapped as she smacked at Alya’s shoulder.

 

Alya laughed and turned to face forward.

 

"Nino's right,” started Adrien with an amused smile. “Just being blond and--"

 

"But what about the personality," argued Alya. "I mean, c'mon! He's been here only two weeks and he acts like he owns the place. He's a ladies man and a jokester and he's so full of confidence..."

 

Adrien glanced back at the boy in question and grimaced. The kid was _annoying_. Was this really how Alya saw Chat Noir?

 

“You might be right,” said Nino with a shrug and Adrien couldn't help but feel betrayed by his best friend --even if Nino had no idea he was talking about him. “So, how are you going to prove it?”

 

“Hmm,” said Alya rubbing her chin thoughtfully as a grin began to slowly stretch across her face. But, before she could say anything more, the teacher came into the classroom to begin class. Adrien and Nino both turned around in their seats.

 

As much as he had been looking forward to school and as happy as he was to be back, Adrien had a hard time paying attention in class that day. Both Alya and, eventually, Nino had agreed that the new boy Lucas seemed like he could be Chat Noir. He wasn’t certain about Marinette, but he knew that they both, at least, saw Chat Noir as being like Lucas; annoyingly confident, a class clown, a ladies man, an attention hog. Adrien knew he shouldn’t care, but… he cared. He cared a lot. None of those things sounded like the attributes of a proper hero. Was this really how the world saw Chat Noir?


	2. Chapter 2

Chat Noir landed silently on the rooftop next to LadyBug.

 

“Good evening, M’Lady,” he purred before wincing hard. _Right_ , he wasn’t going to do that anymore; no more _Monsieur Lady’s Man_.

 

“Hello Chat,” replied LadyBug flashing him an open smile.

 

“Err,” he sputtered, suddenly feeling wrong-footed. What was considered flirting and what was simply being friendly? When it came to interacting with Ladybug, he simply didn’t know anymore -- not after the whole Lucas incident the day before. “Uhh,  ready for patrol?”

 

LadyBug gave him a funny look, but nodded all the same. He grinned weakly and extended his baton while Ladybug threw her yo-yo. And then they were off. They ran along rooftops, leaping between buildings, the cool crisp night air in their faces, their eyes squinting in the deep shadows between light posts. This was Chat Noir’s favourite version of Paris. A big city such as this was never truly quiet, but this was when it was closest to serene.

 

They stopped on the peak of a building, Chat glancing over at Ladybug for direction. She was still, head raised, eyes far away as she focused on the distant sound of a police siren. Chat listened, too. They both crouched, coiled, ready for action, as they listened. When, after a few moments, no additional sirens had joined the first, they wordlessly decided to continue on. This was not an emergency that needed the extra help of Ladybug and Chat Noir.  
  
After completing their route, they stopped atop a particular roof that wasn’t truly _particular_ at all, but had, over time, become their usual stop after that route. Over time, they had developed a finely honed routine. Different evenings had different routes and each route had its own meeting spot and its own resting spot. They mostly had chosen inconspicuous spots, not wanting their routine to be made obvious to onlookers, civilian or villain alike.

LadyBug sat down on the edge of the building, letting her legs dangle over the edge. Chat normally sat next to her, happy for a few minutes of friendly banter before he had to return to his reality. So, it was no wonder that Ladybug was throwing him a strange look over her shoulder while he stood balanced on the sharp peak of the roof. Chat hummed nervously and rubbed the back of his head.

 

“What’s up, Pussycat?” asked Ladybug with a smile.

 

Chat bit his lips together, charmed by her choice of words.

 

“That song is going to be stuck in my head for days,” he replied, though he wasn’t complaining. He didn’t end the sentence with ‘ _m’lady_ ’, though it had taken some effort to not tack it on out of habit.

 

It seemed LadyBug had noticed the missing endearment because she cocked her head to the side and squinted inquistely up at him. It was adorable. Chat’s chest momentarily felt tight at the sight. He awkwardly cleared his throat and moved to gingerly sit beside her making sure to keep a good amount of space between them.

 

“Do… uh… do you think I’m annoying?” he asked.

 

He dropped his chin and anxiously rubbed at the back of his head when he saw her eyebrows rise dramatically at such a question.

 

“I… don’t like using the word ‘annoying’,” she began slowly as if she needed to choose her words carefully. It made Chat instantly uneasy. He had never really worried that he annoyed LadyBug until that moment. “Annoying is a really dismissive word and, when you think about it, actually quite cruel. I try not to use it.”

 

Chat took a deep breath. So, LadyBug _did_ think he was annoying. He sat frozen while it felt like all the blood began to drain from his face and extremities.

 

“But, either way,” continued LadyBug, leaning a bit closer to him, “no, Chat, I don’t think you’re annoying.”

 

Chat slowly, shakily exhaled, relief reanimating him.

 

“What brought this on?” asked Ladybug. “Did I do s--”

 

“Oh no, my Lady,” cut in Chat, suddenly horrified at how her face was beginning to twist up with guilt. “You didn’t do anything. No. It… well…” Chat paused and blew out a breath. “Some of my friends are convinced that this guy we know is Chat Noir.”

 

“Oh,” said Ladybug before giving a small huff of a laugh. “Well, that must be funny. That’s good though, isn’t it? If there was any chance of them being suspicious before, this would definitely help take the focus off you.”

 

Chat smiled at that. Of course LadyBug would look at it that way. She would probably welcome her classmates thinking the new girl was her --well, if she was even still in school. She likely wouldn’t be so easily invalidated or hurt by misguided speculations of her friends.

 

“It was funny for maybe ten seconds,” grumbled Chat, looking out over the city. “Now it’s mostly just offensive.”

 

“Offensive?” asked LadyBug. “Why? Is he not as handsome as you?”

 

She was teasing, but Chat puffed up his chest a little.

 

“Of course that’s a given,” he said with a smirk that only grew when LadyBug bumped her shoulder against his with a little laugh. When had she gotten so close? Had he moved toward her or had she actually, purposefully moved toward him?

 

“He probably can’t fit as many cat puns into a single sentence as you, either,” teased LadyBug.

 

“ _Pawsitively_ not,” agreed Chat.

 

She threw her head back and laughed at his response. Chat’s chest did that warming, tightening thing again --maybe he should get checked out by a doctor.

 

“Okay, but seriously,” said LadyBug sobering, “how is it offensive?”

 

Chat let out a sigh.

 

“The person they think is Chat Noir,” said Chat, “he’s attention seeking and sassy, he’s a flirt and he makes way too many jokes.”

 

Chat looked over at LadyBug in time to see her raise an eyebrow at him. He groaned. Okay, so perhaps that description _did_ sound a _bit_ like Chat Noir… if one squinted.

 

“Augh!” growled Chat, though he smiled through his frustration --being in LadyBug’s presence did that to a fellow. “He’s just… he’s nothing like what Chat Noir stands for.”

 

“I get it,” said LadyBug, smiling kindly, “you feel misrepresented.”

 

That was it! That was exactly the word for it! He felt misrepresented... and it hurt. It hurt and it made him worry. Did Chat Noir even actually represent what he was supposed to stand for?

“Yeah,” whispered Chat, a sudden lump was forming in his throat. “It’s freaking me out a bit,” he admitted. “I don’t want people to think that Chat Noir is some sort of jokester, ladies’ man who doesn’t take anything seriously and is only doing this for the attention. Chat Noir is supposed to be a hero!”

 

“He is,” said LadyBug. “You are.”

 

“Thank you,” said Chat softly. “It’s sort of ironic, you know?”

 

“What’s that?”

 

“When I put on the suit, the mask... I feel more myself than I do when I’m a-- my civilian self,” he said. “I think that’s why it bugs me so much that my friends are likening Chat Noir to this guy. He’s… not someone I want to be like... at _all_.”

 

LadyBug looked solemnly thoughtful.

 

“Do you remember back when we were still really quite new to this whole superhero thing and there had been a girl who had pretended to be friends with me in order to get close to Adrien Agreste?” she asked. “ _As if_ I’d be friends with a bold-faced liar and why she even thought that’d work is beyond me.”

 

Chat could feel his cheeks heat. He hadn’t realized just how aware LadyBug had been of Lila’s actions and their motivations outside of her time akumatized into being Volpina.

 

“Oh, I’m pretty sure I know why she thought that’d work,” he mumbled.

 

“Wah?” asked LadyBug.

 

“Adrien has a huge crush on LadyBug,” said Chat with a self conscious shrug.

 

“What?” squeaked LadyBug in the most oddly adorable way Chat had ever heard anyone or anything squeak in his life. “How do you know this?”

 

Chat laughed and reached back to rub at the back of his head before catching himself and putting his hand down.

 

“I know because we’re in the same club,” he said, laughing when LadyBug’s face went from the surprised and possibly embarrassed expression she’d been wearing to something looking more annoyed. “Yep,” he continued. “We meet every Tuesday night; People Who’ve Been Heartbroken by LadyBug Anonymous. Oh, whoops, I guess I shouldn’t have outed him since it’s anonymous.”

 

“Ha. Ha. You’re hilarious, Kitty,” said LadyBug in deadpan. Chat grinned. “Anyway,” she continued, “we were talking about you and this boy everyone thinks is you.”

 

Chat sobered at that. He leaned back on his hands and let out a heavy breath. He had gotten caught up in the joy of being in LadyBug’s presence, which was nice but he had planned on changing the way he acted as Chat Noir, had he not?

 

“Yeah,” he said, going back to staring off into the nighttime cityscape. “And, you know, you’re right. It can only help me to have the people close to me assuming some other guy is Chat Noir. Some days it gets really hard to come up with alibis. I’m honestly surprised I have managed to keep my cover this long.”

 

LadyBug hummed in agreement which had Chat momentarily wondering if she had as much trouble as him some days covering for her random absences, if she had as many close calls as him when it came to keeping his secret a secret.

 

“It still bothers me to see my friends staring at him all… I don’t know… starstruck, I guess,” added Chat after a pause. “Especially since he doesn’t deserve it.

 

“Fun perks of the job,” said LadyBug with an apologetic smile and a small shrug.

 

 _‘You’re the best perk of my job, M’Lady’_ was what Chat wanted to say, but he bit it back remembering the way Lucas had flashed his stupid fake smile and said something (likely smarmy) to that group of girls and they had all giggled with hearts in their eyes. _Augh_.

 

“Thank you for the talk, LB,” said Chat after some time had passed. “I’m sorry for complaining. I’m sure there’s hundreds of people across Paris who are making similar speculations.”

 

“Of course, Chat,” said LadyBug. “And yes, there’s probably many people out there unwittingly covering for us. I have a few friends who are often speculating about LadyBug and Chat Noir's civilian identities, too. Tikki says there’s a bit of magic to our Miraculous identities that helps keep people from easily telling who we are. Which is good because honestly, I can't imagine  spandex suit and little mask being enough to keep people, especially those closest to us, from figuring it out.”

 

“Yeah,” said Chat, nodding. "That is good and I definitely don’t want to lose my secret identity, but I just… hate feeling unknown.”

  
‘ _It is one of the many reasons why I wish we could reveal our identities to each other_ ’ he thought to himself but didn’t say. He was probably just being clingy because he was pathetic and lonely and still had that long-standing crush on her, but he _so_ craved to be truly, fully known and accepted by her. There was such an intimacy to knowing. He understood her desire to keep the two lives separate, but he didn’t share it. The necessary secrets in his life separated and alienated him and he had enough in his life that did that already without being Chat Noir. If only he had even just one person who knew both sides of him, who really saw him, and accepted him… he was sure it’d make all the difference.


End file.
